Egyptian protesters shout anti-Mohammed Morsi slogans before clashes in front of the presidential palace in Cairo, Egypt, on Friday.Associated Press

Protesters denouncing Egypt's Islamist president hurled stones and firebombs through the gates of his palace gates in Cairo on Friday, clashing with security forces who fired tear gas and water cannons, as more than a week of political violence came to Mohammed Morsi's symbolic doorstep for the first time.

The streets outside the presidential palace were a scene of mayhem for hours into the night.

Security forces pumped volley after volley of tear gas, set fire to protester tents and at one point dragged a protester to the ground, stripped him and beat him. Protesters burned tires and hurled stones and fireworks. A 23-year-old died when he was shot in the chest and forehead, the Health Ministry said.

The head of Egypt's ambulance service said at least 54 people had been wounded across the country, mostly in Cairo, Reuters reported.

The protesters' demands

The march on the palace, where Morsi was not present, was part of a wave of demonstrations called by opposition politicians, trying to wrest concessions from Morsi.

But many of the protesters go further, saying he must be removed from office, accusing his Muslim Brotherhood of monopolizing power and failing to deal with the country's mounting woes. Many have been further angered by Morsi's praise of the security forces after the high death toll, which is widely blamed on excessive use of force by the police.

The government's response

Morsi issued a statement condemning the wave of violence that erupted outside the palace, NBC said.

The president also called on political forces to condemn the violence and withdraw all supporters from the areas surrounding the palace. Morsi said all relevant security agencies had been ordered to end the violence immediately and protect all state and public properties.

Amid the political and economic discontent, Morsi and opposition groups vowed to keep their supporters off the streets in an effort to avoid further bloodshed, CNN said.

A lack of trust

The protests this week, with dozens of people killed and entire cities in turmoil, have revealed a whopping deficit of public trust in the Muslim Brotherhood, the Islamic group that dominates the leadership of this young democracy of the Arab Spring, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

In cities like Port Said, the protesters have displayed an open defiance of Morsi’s orders on a curfew and state of emergency. Egypt’s Army chief warns of the state collapsing. And indeed, many Egyptians now talk of splitting up the Arab world’s most populous state.

The triggers for this upheaval were the second anniversary of the fall of Hosni Mubarak and a court sentencing 21 people for the deaths of 74 people after a soccer match last year.

But below the surface of this dissent lies a deeper struggle. It is one trying to define the source of legitimacy for Egypt’s new leaders, or the kind of sentiment that cements trust between a government and its people.

As it has slowly risen to power in the past two years, the Muslim Brotherhood has broken many promises about the role it would play in representative government. Its flip-flops and power grabs in forming a new regime have only added to a worry among democracy advocates that Morsi would define his authority from Islam, or sharia law, rather than from constitutional rights and secular pluralism.

The young protesters

The forces arrayed against Morsi and his party linked to the Muslim Brotherhood are many: opposition politicians, protest movements, unions and activists.

But according to the Los Angeles Times, one of the most volatile threats to the Islamist-led government is embittered youths roaming like ragged armies and harboring little hope two years after the revolution that overthrew Mubarak.

"We have no other choice but to fight. The political powers don't represent me," said Ahmed Rifai, pulling up his shirt to show off a belly speckled with birdshot wounds. He pointed to a homeless boy at his side. "A child like this shouldn't even be fighting, but he has nothing else."

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